Slick- The Revised Version
by Kortez
Summary: (This is the original Slick, but I am re-writing it because the first one sucks) Kortez Bleck. Two simple little words. A simple little fourteen year old? No! A simple life? No! Far from it! Kortez- who used to be a nobody- is kidnapped. She's tortured- to be more specific, medically tortured. Is she strong enough to make it out of there? Or will the chemicals get the best of her?
1. Chapter 1

_**This is Slick, v2. Which means, I am re-writing this bad boy. ;) **_

_**Disclaimer- I only own my OCs and the story/idea/Blinded/original story "Slick". The old one sucks! XD**_

_**Go.**_

**T**he girl walked into Castle Bleck, holding a warm plastic cup of delectable dark chocolate hot cocoa. It was her fourteenth birthday, after all. Nastasia- her pretend mom- decided to take her in the cold- out to get hot chocolate.

December twenty-first. Ah, it was so cold. But… that was how Kortez liked it. Kortez- as in, the somewhat lucky birthday girl. This was the only day that she felt as someone actually cared about her. Not treating her as a child. Yes, her dad _smothered_ her in love, but… he treated Kortez in a way that made her feel immature.

Today was the only day… out of three-hundred sixty-five days that she felt as an _adult. _

No no, Kortez isn't like any other teenage girl out there. She doesn't want a cell phone, jewelry, makeup, a boyfriend (well, she DOES have a crush...), or even clothes! All that she wanted was peace and quiet in her room, maybe a piece of devil's food cake, and maybe a few friends.

But she only has two friends, so _you_ do the math.

"Nassy? Did Dimentio forget to pay the electric bill?" Kortez asked, thus being consumed by the darkness that flooded the castle. Nastasia chuckled and offered her a huge grin.

Nastasia then flipped the light switch on as everyone yelled, "SURPRISE!"

Kortez's face instantly lit up at the sight of her two best friends- Zypher and Doopliss.

She ran over to them- almost drenching the two in hot chocolate. Doopliss gave her a humungous bear hug and Zypher wrapped his tiny arms around her waist. Zypher was an X-Naut Elite, so what could he say? He was so tiny and cute! But Doopliss…

Just to let you in on a little secret, Kortez _looooooves_ Doopliss. Soooo much, actually. It's rather sweet.

"Happy birthday, Kort!" Doopliss smiled. Zypher nodded in agreement.

"Happy birthday, sweetie," Zypher said coolly. Oh yeah, Zypher always calls Kortez "sweetie" and "baby", stuff like that.

Doopliss slipped his hands into Kortez's claws. She held them tightly and winked at him. "Thanks," she answered.

She wiggled her scaly tail a bit. The air was filled with happiness and anticipation- for once. Ya'see, when you're Goth and fall under the category of emo, then sometimes, you have the permission to be sullen and quiet and never happy. Today, she had some hope of happiness. _Hopefully the cake is good! _ Kortez thought.

Kortez walked to the kitchen- showing off her… odd posture. Oh, what _interesting _features she has.

Hah. If anything, Kortez is one of the most awkward people in the whole entire galaxy!  
Being 5"11- taller than her teachers and the rest of the class, having purple hair, pale skin, a dark- Goth- voice, freckles on one cheek- since the left one has a large scar, stuttering when she read, having a problem to speak in public, and having a freakshow of a family isn't necessarily the best fairytale perfect life. And on top of all that jazz, she has a slight hunchback and walking problems.

After eating pizza and drinking coffee, it was time for the cake. Kortez's favorite part of the birthday. Cake and ice cream. Mmm!

Count Bleck patted her on the back and kissed her forehead. "Happy birthday, my dear."

"Thanks Daddy," Kortez whispered. Dimentio lit fourteen candles on the devil's food cake.

"Make a wish," Zypher announced- a slight grin cracking under his equipment.

Kortez smiled back and thought about what to wish for. She then made her decision.

_I wish, _she started, _that people would understand me. I wish that- to someone out there- I wasn't so awkward. I wish that I was useful. I wish that someone would love my potential. I wish that I was loved and cherished- not being treated as a child. I wish… that someone would love what I'm capable of…_

Kortez then blew out the fourteen candles with hope. Maybe, just maybe her wishes would come true. In any way, shape, form, or fashion.

Zypher- feeling the excitement ooze off of her body- read her mind. He read her mind about what she was wishing for.

…And baby, he was gonna make it come true.

"Hey, Kortez sweetie? I gotta go make a phone call, 'k?" Zypher said.

"Okay then," Kortez replied.

Zypher trotted into the living room and grabbed his cell phone. He flipped it open and pressed "two" on speed dial.

"Hey, yeah, boss? It's Zypher here. You got yourself a subject fifty-nine. Yeah. Of course, boss. You got the big brother? His name is Mark? Huh. Awesome. Good job. Good good," Zypher said- keeping his cool. He flipped his phone back closed and went back to his 'best friend' to eat some cake.

"You're back!" Kortez laughed- shoving a spoonful of cake into her mouth. She licked her peanut-butter frosting covered lips. Doopliss sat next to her- continuing their conversation.

Oh… but she was so happy... She had a normal life.

Nonsense! The boss should have subject fifty-nine! Yes…


	2. Chapter 2

_**Chapter 2 of Slick- The Revised Version. Is it good? **_

_**Go.**_

**T**hat night, Zypher told me that he had a surprise waiting for me at the dumpster. Being granted with daddy and Nassy's permission, I followed Zypher. At the dumpster, Zypher pulled something out of his back pocket and placed it in my hands.

"What is it?" I asked curiously. He chuckled mildly and smiled.

"Just press the button, Kortez! It's a surprise!" he replied eagerly. I gave him a huge grin and pressed the button on the pen-like object.

Suddenly, an electrical shock filled my whole body. From my hands, to my neck, to my chest, to my ribs, to my spine, to my ribs, and when it reached my legs, I collapsed on the ground. I let out a groan and shut my eyes- which were covered by my signature purple sunglasses- that I like to call shades. I couldn't see, hear, or feel anything. My thoughts went blank.

Oh my gosh. I was dying.

I started to drool as Zypher pulled out his cell phone and effortlessly flipped it open.

_**8:56 PM- THE NEXT DAY~  
**_I opened my eyes- regaining my consciousness. I let out a silent moan and shook my head. I was cold. I looked down dizzily and noticed that I was sprawled out on crystalline tile floor. Where was I…?

I had some kind of soft cloth on my body. I sat up and pulled the collar of my shirt out. It looked like a hospital gown…?

Was I in a hospital? Surely not- because they don't leave their patients on the cold floor. I looked at the walls. They were glass! Glass walls? Where was I?

I looked to my left and saw nothing but shadows. I looked to my right and saw nothing. Only another glass "cage", if you will.

"Hello?" I croaked quietly.

There was no sound.

"Anyone here?"  
Silence.

I gulped and looked at the floor once more. There was a mat with a flat pillow and a sheet in the corner. So, I crawled onto the darkest spot on the mat and sat in a fetal position- holding my knees tightly to my chest.

I looked at my arm closely. There was a black tattoo-like thing on it that said "FIFTY-NINE". I rubbed on it. Wow, it was sore!

As I heard footsteps, I instinctively pushed myself more into the shadow.

"Zyskos! You're a failure!" someone shouted angrily. In the cage in front of me, a little X-Naut- around ten years old- was thrown into his glass cage. He didn't have X-Naut equipment on. He was wearing a little jumpsuit. A regular X-Naut's fur should be gray- but his had a green-ish tint. He had stitches everywhere and his eyes were bloodshot. He was pitiful.

"Mr. Ninnie! I've tried and tried and _tried _to please you!" he cried in a young voice.

"Well the Sir told me to execute you on Friday!" the older X-Naut hissed coldly- slamming the glass door shut. He plucked through a folder that was attached to his cage and scribbled a few things down on a piece of paper.

The little X-Naut's eyes started to fill up with tears. He was going to be killed on Friday. And it was Tuesday, right?

After the older X-Naut left, the little one sniffled. My eyes darted to his. I examined him and looked at his tattoo.

It read, "TWO".

"Is anyone awake?" the little X-Naut asked sheepishly. I slowly inched myself to the front of my cage.

"I am," I whispered. His face lit up.

"What's your name? I'm Zyskos. You must be number fifty nine," he smiled.

I pressed my hands up against the glass. "Kortez. How long have you been trapped here? And where am I?"

"You're at the X-Naut Secret Society. Or vise-versa. I've been help captive here ever since I was three months old," Zyskos said in a juvenile voice.

"Wow," I breathed.

"Yeah. Your two neighbors are Vixie-Dixie and Zippidee-doo-da," Zyskos replied. "Guys! Meet your new neighbor!"

A scrawny Koopa with dull black hair, red skin, and large black and red bat wings crawled out of the dark.

"That's Vixie-Dixie," Zyskos exclaimed. Vixie smiled at him.

"My real name is Vixen. Zyskos just calls me Vixie-Dixie," she said.

"Oh, well then. I like the wings," I offered.

She tried to smile again. "Zip's sleeping, Kortez. I can feel his vibes," Vixen nodded in a hushed voice.

"Vibes? You mean vibration?" I asked.

She whispered, "Yeah. A few years ago I started to feel vibrations after a test."

"Test?"  
"Zyskos! Kortez! Get in your corners! He's coming!" Vixen whisper-screamed ever so silently.

Zyskos ran to his corner. I did the same and pretended like I was asleep.

"Oh, my little GMOs…" someone cooed. I heard heavy, _heavy _footsteps. Now, I was scared.

"It's just feeding time… Late-night testing is canceled for tonight, my pets," he replied- calming around fifty of the kids in the cages.

I heard sighs of relief from all over the place.

"You can remove yourselves from the shadows now…"

Vixen and Zyskos slowly crawled up to the front of their cages. I was still terrified and confused, so I stayed put.

I saw an X-Naut open Vixen's cage and put down a plate of food in front of her. "You're late today, Zenos," she grinned.

The X-Naut grinned back. "When are we ever early, Vixie?" he laughed.

"Well, 'ya got yourself a point," she replied. Zenos whispered something to her and closed her cage door back. She nodded and went back to her corner.

"Yes… This is the new child, right?" the man asked.

"Affirmative, sir," an X-Naut replied.

"Ah, I see."

My cage door opened as my muscles tensed. I dug my claws into my hospital gown and pressed my un-shelled back against the glass wall. The cage door closed as the man came closer to me.

"I'm not going to hurt you, dear," he said soothingly. He reached his hand out to me. I winced a bit as he pet my knee.

"Come out a bit closer. Come on…"

He took my hands and pulled me forward. I struggled a bit- since I was so scared.

After he successfully pulled me to him, I tried to kick the man.

"Easy, easy… Now could you tell me your name?"

I shook my head.

"Oh come on, don't be a coward…"  
"Kortez. My name is Kortez," I breathed.

He put his hand on my chest.

"Why are you so scared?" he asked. "Your heart is pounding, Kortez…"

I swallowed hard and shook my head again. He grinned under all of his equipment.

"Who are you and what do you want?" I stuttered.

He started to pet my hair ever so slightly. "That depends. I am Sir Grodus… your _master."_

I grunted as he rubbed my back. "And I test on children… Medically test on them. They mutate- eventually."

"Like a mad scientist?" I tilted my head.

"I prefer to be called a dictator, but whatever fits your expectations about me," Grodus replied.

"Are you going to test on me…?" I whispered.

"Oh, Kortez… Of course I am…" he cooed.

"When?"  
"Well, tonight I need to do a few things to you. Height, weight, blood type, things like that," he replied.

"How do you check blood type…?"

"Ah… So you're scared of needles, right?"

_**9:27 PM- IN LAB #4~**_

Grodus gestured for me to step on a scale. When I did, he looked at the red numbers that instantly showed up.

"Well… An average Koopa's weight is… Hm. Around one fifty… But you, Kortez, you are twenty pounds overweight. And I don't like that. I don't like that at all. Even though you look skinny. We have to get that number down," he grunted.

My face flushed. Oh…

After he checked my height, he told for me to hang on. So, I sat down on a chair. He came back inside with a small clear box. He opened it and plucked out what looked like… a needle.

"No!" I cried. I went to the corner of the room and shoved myself in it.

"Don't be a coward, Kortez! And it's a teensy-tiny needle," he assured me. But, I didn't believe him. To be more specific, I didn't trust him at all.

"Don't! Please! Needles hurt!" I begged.

He slowly came over to me and took my arm. I struggled to get it out of his grip, but he held it still. He pressed around on it to feel of my veins. After he picked out the best one, he eased the needle into my arm.

"Ugh! Stop!" I shrieked, trying to get free.

"Kortez! Be still! The more that you struggle, the more painful that it will be!" Grodus scolded and drew three vials of blood.

I scowled as he took the needle out of my arm. I have a game plan! Hey!  
_Okay, as soon as he lets me go, I'll make a run for it._

He took the vials of blood to a different room. "Stay put, Kortez."

I cracked a mere grin when he left the room. I got up and threw myself to the door. I grabbed it and pulled the heavy door open.

I ran for my life when the loud alarms were set off. I sucked deep breaths in as I sprinted through the hallways.

_Down the hallways, take a right, go through the double-doors, go through the middle doors… then I'll end up in the cage room… Grab Zyskos… Take him with me… find the exit… _

I darted down the narrow corridors. I swiftly swung the door open and cried out when I felt something sink into my claves. But I couldn't stop… No… I have to get Zyskos out of here…

"Kortez! Stop!" I heard several people yell that from every perimeter of the room.

I took a sharp right and felt my heart pound out of my chest. I was focused on getting Zyskos and myself out of here.

After I took the right, I zoomed into the double-doors. My hospital gown whipped my thighs violently, but I had to ignore that.

_Keep your eyes on the prize…_

I quickly inhaled and let it out- sweat was pouring off of my forehead. I felt something shoot into my shoulder blades. Ooooh it stung!

My eyes were fixed on the middle doors. I closed my eyes for a few seconds and opened them. A few X-Nauts were blocking them- but I shoved them out of the way and bounded through the set of middle doors. And there I was. The cage room.

All of the poor kids had mixed emotions. Excited, hopeful, terrified… you name it.

I straightened my shoulders and hurried to Zyskos's cage.

"I'm gonna get you out of here," I whispered.

"Kortez! No! Don't-"  
The doors slammed open as I looked over my shoulder. I pressed a button on Zyskos's cage- and it opened. I grabbed him by the waist and slung him over my shoulder.

"I demand you to stop!" an X-Naut snarled.

I rolled my eyes. "In your dreams!"

"Kortez… he's right, sweetie. You need to stop," Zypher cooed.

My eyes widened. "Zypher?"

Everything got slower and slower as I looked at what he had in his hands. …A dart gun.

I looked at my claves. Darts. Three of them. Right in the center. Zyskos handed me one.

"It was on your back," he muttered.

My face flushed as I glared at Zypher. "You traitor!" I growled, "I'm going to kill you I'm gonna rip out your throat and harvest your appendix for the zombie apocalypse!"

"Calm down, Kortez! If you don't, I'll have to shoot you again."

"Calm down?! I'm _enraged!_"

I got closer to him- but before I could murder him, he shot me. Right in the chest.

I dropped to my knees. Zyskos gasped and touched my face. "Kortez! Are you okay?!" he cried.

Again, I heard heavy footsteps. "Good work, Zypher."


	3. Chapter 3

**Next Chapter!**

**Go~  
**_**5:27 AM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**___

**J**ust a quick reminder- if you're ever stuck in a glass cage, the mats are superior compared to sleeping on the cold, hard floor! Just saying.

I stretched my arms out and relaxed my shoulders. The lights were turned off, and it was so peaceful. Well, there were guards waiting at every cage. Other than that, I felt somewhat calm.

Vixen told me that the lights turn on at five-thirty in the morning. And there's a clock on the front of each cage, so I could see the time from Zyskos's clock. I had three minutes, so I kept my eyes closed. The light was so blinding!  
When the clock turned to five-thirty, a blaring alarm went off and the lights were turned on. I heard distressful moans and groans and quiet yawns. The guard X-Nauts left the room as the feeding crew came in.

I went back into the shadows. My door opened.

"Kortez? You okay?" Zypher asked calmly. I growled at him.

"Go away. I hate you," I snarled. He laughed and sat a plate of food and a bottle of water on the floor.

"Go ahead, you needa eat," Zypher said. I sighed and pressed my shoulders against the cold glass walls.

"No," I replied stubbornly.

"You sure?"

"Mmhmm."

"Well, just a quick heads-up, Grodus is gonna call you in to do a test on you in around fifteen minutes. You shouldn't be testing on an empty stomach," Zypher nodded.

"What kind of test?"

"I dunno. He doesn't tell me that stuff."

Suddenly, I heard a super loud, high-pitched screech. Followed by glass shattering.

"Velocitess! Stop right this instant!" someone screamed.

"No! I'm not staying here any longer!" a girl voice shrieked. "Ugh! GET YOUR HANDS OFF OF ME, YOU CREEPS!"

"I need a dart gun or an injection of anesthesia stat!"

Then, everything got reeaaaal quiet. I heard a distressful scream mixed in with sobs. "No!"

"I need another injection in her arm! Quickly!" some X-Naut yelled.

"That's it baby, just calm down…" people cooed.

"Velocity!" I looked to my left and saw a Koopa with light brown shaggy hair, shiny green eyes, a red jumpsuit, and an IV jabbed into his hand. He looked around my age. His eyes were full of tears.

I crawled over there and knocked on the glass. He noticed me. "Who's Velocity?" I asked.

"That's my big sister! Her voice shatters glass that's around her, and she can't _stand_ tight spaces or people around her!" he cried.

"She'll be okay… right?"

"Who knows what Master'll do to her," he replied.

"You mean Grodus?"

"Yeah."

"Oh."

"I'm Zip- or number fifty-seven. What's your name?" he asked.

"Kortez. What have they done to you?"

"They've took a lot of my blood and swabbed my brain. They said that they dunno what they're gonna to me," Zip shook his head, "Yet."

"Well, one guy told me that I'm about to go through a test, so…"

"Good luck with that. I'm scared to death of Master."

_**5:40 AM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**___

Grodus retrieved me from my cell and took me down through a few hallways. I then saw some people casually wheeling Velocity down the hall on a hospital bed.

"Ughhh…" she groaned. Her hands and feet were strapped to the bed.

"Sir?" an X-Naut said. Grodus looked down at him.

"Hm?"

"Are you doing test number one on her?" he replied.

"Correct. I'm just taking her down to the dressing room to get her changed. Just between you and me, if someone runs in a hospital gown, they look like complete idiots," Grodus snickered.

"Haha, that's true," the X-Naut laughed.

Velocity's eyes shot wide open. "Get. Me. Off. Of. This. Bed. Now."

"Anesthesia, please. In her hand," the X-Naut demanded.

After taking a left through a door, Grodus opened it for me. "They will lead you to the testing room after they dress you."

"You mean, I dress myself," I said.

"No no, they dress you. Who knows, you might try to escape while you change. So that's why they dress you."

"And they're all boys…?"

"Yes. What's wrong with that- oh, I get it," Grodus nodded.

I bit the inside of my cheek uneasily as Grodus pushed me in there. He closed the door. An X-Naut was waiting for me at the door. He took my hand and led me to an individual room. There were so many people in here!

"Vixen, _Vixen,_ calm_ down," _someone said.

"No! Stop this nonsense! I can dress _myself!" _Vixen rasped.

The X-Naut took me inside of the room and locked the door.

"Uh… You're not gonna do this, are you?" I asked.

"Sir's orders. Sorry kid," he said.

Oh gosh.

_**6:03 AM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**__**~  
**_Yeah… That was weird. I bit, kicked, and scratched the X-Naut. He had to fight me to get me dressed… oh well.

I had on windbreaker material navy blue pants, a navy blue and red windbreaker, a red tank top, and gray tennis shoes on. I had little stickers on my chest. Apparently it took my heartbeat- or something like that.

The X-Naut led me to a humungous yard-like area- with a glass dome on top. It was like a maze. Everything was gray. The bricks, metal, stone, you name it. There were intercoms and cameras on almost every wall. It was ridiculous!  
"Ah, it's nice to see you here, Kortez. In this test, we will be testing your intelligence, memory, and speed. You will be going through a series of mazes. And if you do not make it through them in time, you will be punished and will have to start again. The first maze will be quite simple. You have five minutes to reach your stopping point- or finish line. Do you understand?" Grodus asked- his voice booming through the intercom.

"I understand," I replied.

"Any questions?"

"No, Sir."

"Alright then. You may walk up to the yellow line now," Grodus instructed. "One… two… three… GO!"  
I bounded through the maze. Left or right? I had to make a quick decision!

So, I decided to go left. I ran through the narrow corridor. Middle, left, or right?

Middle.

Left or right?

Right.

"Four minutes left!" Grodus said.

Left, middle, or right?  
Left.

After a series of lefts, middles, and rights, I finally reached the finish line with two minutes to spare.

"Good job, Kortez. You will have two extra minutes added onto your next test. Now on this maze, it will be a bit harder. You will have three minutes on this test, with two extra minutes. So you will have a total of five minutes on this next test. You needed it."

_**6:50 AM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**__**~  
**_ Oh gosh! That wore me out!

"Kortez! Success!" an X-Naut smiled. He opened my cage door and lightly pushed me in.

Yeah, that was my X-Naut dresser. The dude that dresses me, which I think is super creepy. I had a much more comfortable black jumpsuit on. The fabric was so soft!

I laid my body down on my mat in the corner. I needed to sleep. I was _so_ tired.

"Kortez!" Zip whispered, making me jump to my feet. I crawled over to his cage.

"Huh?"  
"They took Vixen! They're testing on her!" Zip whisper-screamed.

"What are they doing to her?" I asked.

"I dunno! But I think that she'll be okay, right?"  
"Yeah. I mean, I just came back from a test and I'm fine. I'm just a little tired," I reassured him.

He sighed in relief. "Okay then. Thanks buddy."

"Welcome."

_**7:00 AM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**___

_Subject #/ Name~ #7, Vixen. _

_Test/Procedure~ Expansion Test. _

_(Optional) Try Number~ 26._

_(Optional) Areas of Body~ Everywhere._

_(Optional) Test Number of the Day~ 104__th__ test of the day._

_(Optional)Before Height/Weight~ Height- Five foot one. Weight- Forty-six pounds._

_(Optional) After Height/Weight~ XXXXXX_

_(Optional) Notes/Steps~ Inject Vixen with the new growth chemical. See what happens. Trying to get her seventy pounds heavier- make her look like a model. If this doesn't work, we'll try this on Velocitess or Alessandra. _

The X-Naut put down his clipboard and returned his eyes on Vixen. She was lying on the metal table in front of him. Her eyes were full of sleepiness, her body weak from struggling, and her mind troubled from all of the confusion…

He clapped his hands once and picked up the clear syringe. He filled it with the new growth chemical.

"What are you gonna do to me?" Vixen asked groggily.

"I'm going to give you a makeover…"  
"With syringes?" she whispered.

"Yep. Whatever the Sir says goes," he replied.

"But I like how I look…"

"Vixen, my dear, you're hideous," he snorted. He flicked the syringe's needle and looked at where he wanted to inject it into her at. "Let's inject this into the bottom of your neck…"  
Vixen gulped. She squeezed her eyes shut as he slowly released the chemical into her neck…

_**8:01 AM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**__**~  
**_I opened and wiped my eyes. I fell asleep. I looked to my right. Vixen _still _wasn't back!  
I looked in front of me. Zyskos was fast asleep- curled into a little fluffy ball, slightly snoring. Oh, the poor thing was going to be killed on Friday the 25th… Christmas.

I sighed and started to wonder. Was that Velocity girl okay? What's happening to Vixen?

But my biggest problem was: Zyskos was gonna be killed on Christmas. Nothing was more important than him. Not even me getting out of this joint. I can always find a way, but that little kid couldn't. I mean, even if it killed me to help him escape… I had to help the kid. I've lived for fourteen long years, and Zyskos has only lived for either nine or… ten.

Still, I have to worry about myself right now. I was so worried and-

Oh. Dear. Jades. Holy crap.

My, _my. _Who is _that?  
_A girl came walking in. To be more… specific… This girl was very, _very _detailed. Let's just say that she had a very _curvy _body, if you will. If you look up "hourglass body" on the Internet, then there would be a picture of her. Not really. But she was an hourglass. She was a Koopa with bright red skin, wavy black hair, plump red lips, a tan muzzle, a way-too-tight-on-the-chest pink jumpsuit on, a… rather large bosom, a tiny waist that didn't fit in with her hips, and the rest was mainly self-explanatory.

"When are you gonna come and get me?" she asked.

"Grodus is going to come and examine you in a while, Vixie," an X-Naut replied.

"Oh, well tell Grodie not to take too long, 'k?" …Vixen said.

Sweet mama, it was Vixen. Wow. She was ugly! Boys would've gone crazy, though. But not me. 'Cause I'm not a boy and I hate hourglasses.

Oh, Vixen. Poor Vixen.

"Ugh! I hate this cage!" Vixen whined.

I glared at her and pressed my back against the left side of the wall. I shut my eyes and tried to go back to sleep.

_**1:24 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**___

I was awaken by the sound of an intercom blaring through the cage room.

"Hello and good afternoon, my pets. Tonight- at eight- is 'Mutant Show and Tell'. So I need the following people's cleanup crew to get their restrooms/baths ready. I need: Vixen's, Zip's, Velocitess's, Zyskos's, Kortez's, and Mark's. Everyone else is a minor role tonight- and is _just _on display. The special six will be on special watch and touchable display. You six will be under special care and will be on a series of IVs- just to make sure that you do not get sick at the event. And everyone, _everyone _must be on their best behavior!" Grodus announced. A lot of people huffed and groaned and cried.

Zyskos apparently got scared and started _squalling. _I crawled up to the front of my cage and tried to comfort him.

"It's okay, Zyskos. Everything's gonna be fine. I'm gonna take good care of you. And I won't let them do anything bad to you, okay?" I said soothingly. He pressed his soft hands against the glass and nodded.

"Okay Kortez. I'm overreacting," he sniffled and wiped his eyes. I offered him a smile and he smiled back.

_**2:17 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**__**~  
**_All five of us- Zyskos, Zip, Vixen, a very tired Velocity, and I walked into a upscale room with a huge dining table with enormous chairs. Grodus was sitting in the chair on the end of the table.

"Why, welcome my ever so special darlings. Vixen dear, you look wonderful," Grodus nodded.

Vixen giggled. "Thanks, Grodie."

"And I _love _your personality change, too," he replied.

"Thanks again, baby," Vixen winked.

"Everyone take their seats, Mark will be here momentarily," Grodus said.

Zyskos reached out for my hand, so I took it. I walked to a seat and put him in the one right beside me. Zip sat next to me and tapped his fingers on the table.

The doors slammed open as a super tall Koopa walked in. He had chains on his hands. Three X-Nauts were escorting him inside. The guy had shaggy black hair, dull red skin, long and very overgrown claws, beautiful purple eyes, a pale muzzle that looked somewhat dirty, huge yellow canines, and big feet that had humungous claws.

"Welcome, Mark," Grodus welcomed. Mark growled and looked around.

"I'm not sitting next to her," Mark snarled and flicked his finger to Vixen. Vixen looked up and her face lit up. A grin spread across her lips.

"Hey, sweetie. You can sit next to me, baby. I won't bite," Vixen said.

Zip's face flushed. He then uttered, "I'll sit with her. You can sit next to Kortez."

Mark tilted his head to me and limped over to the seat on the right of me. He sat down and glared at me.

"Well then. So, I suppose that everyone is here," Grodus offered. Everyone nodded. "Okay. Each of you has a cleanup crew, which is basically a team that cleans you people up. Zip's crew is ready, so Zip- you can just go to the room on the right and they will usher you to your cleanup room."

Zip got up and vanished into the room on the right.

"Zyskos, go," Grodus said. "Vixen, go."

A few minutes passed as everyone cleared out of the room.

"Kortez, go." I nodded and went to the room on the right.

_**2:34 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**___

Grodus was right about the whole entire cleanup crew thing. I was in a bathtub with an X-Naut scrubbing my hair.

"This is kinda awkward, don't 'ya think?" I asked.

The X-Naut shrugged. "I've done this a million times on various people, so it's not as awkward anymore. But, you know, you're new at this."

"You have a point," I replied as he rinsed my messy purple fluff ball of hair off. He plopped a glob of conditioner in it.

"Yeah. So how do you like it here?" he said calmly.

"I _hate_ it. I miss my family," I sighed.

He patted my bare boney shoulder. "I know what you mean about losing your family, kid. My mom was being tested on and she eventually died of being starved. My dad died in my arms as I tried to save his life. My wife is being held captive. But, at least my two sons are alive."

"Who are your sons?" I asked.

"Zypher and Zyskos. I heard about how you were captured. Sorry about my son. He was forced to betray you," he shook his head.

"Zyskos is Zypher's brother?"

"Mmhmm."

"Huh."

He nodded and pressed on my shoulder blades. It felt so good! I looked down at my feet- which were being drenched with water and soap by another X-Naut.

_**3:09 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**___

I was dressed in a _clean _black jumpsuit. I was lying face down on a soft padded table. An Elite was rubbing my back.

Velocity was lying on the table next to me- getting the same thing done. She looked very relaxed. She needed it.

"Ahh…" she smiled. "This is the only good thing about 'Mutant Show and Tell', other than the huge dinner that they serve us."

"Really?" I replied.

"Yeah. Oh! I forgot!" Velocity exclaimed, "My name's Velocitess. You can call me Velocity or Vel, or whatever. What's your name?"

"Kortez. Are 'ya feeling better?" I asked.

"Yep! I was having a meltdown earlier today, sorry," she excused herself.

"Haha, that's okay. So what do they do at this whole 'Mutant Show and Tell' event?" I replied.

"Oh yeah, I forgot about that! You're new. Uhh… it's kinda hard to explain," Velocity shook her head. "Well, all of us look all spiffy and people are allowed to touch us and examine us and take blood samples and such. Fancy crap like that. It sucks."  
"Ugh. Sounds horrible."

"'Cause it is," she said.

_**4:50 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**__**~  
**_All six of us returned into the conference/dining room. Grodus nodded.

"Good, good. All of you people look fantastic!" he exclaimed. All of us sat down and looked around. "Now, as if you do not know, you guys will have dinner as I run through the guidelines of the extravaganza."

He said, "As you see below you, there are menus… Pick an entrée for tonight and I will tell the chefs to make it."

Everyone picked up their menu and flipped through it. Oh, there was so many things to chose from!

Ribs, liver, fish, steak, even _brains. _Everything looked delicious, but… I had to choose _something!_

I love steak… right? But I love ribs, and there was so much to choose from!

"Vixen? What would you like?"

"I'd take the steak- topped with Italian white truffle cream sauce and gold leaf shavings AND I want a few slices of brioche," Vixen grinned- tilting her head up.

"You have quite the expensive taste, don't you?"

"Of course I do, Grodie!"

"Zip?"

"I want a cheeseburger and onion rings. Nothing fancy- unlike Vixen," Zip shrugged.

"Velocitess?"

"I would like a five-cheese pizza with bacon, onions, and pepperoni… Yeah," Velocity nodded.

"Zyskos?"

"I want macaroni and cheese! With the breadcrumb stuff on top! And a grilled cheese!" Zyskos smiled.

"Kortez?"

Hm… After I made my decision, I spoke. "Steak with fried onions and the garlic potatoes." Well, I do like garlic.

"Mark?"  
"Polenta, some kind of fancy sausage, and lentils," Mark shrugged.

"Okay then. It'll be here shortly. There are microphones in here, so they heard everything that we said," Grodus said. "So, tonight is the 'Mutant Show and Tell'. And… I will be explaining to a large focus group about all of you stunning mutants. Well, some of you aren't mutants… yet."

Mark, Zip, and I looked at each other with nervousness in our eyes. Grodus then spoke again. "Vixen, they're going to want to examine you with your new makeover. Velocitess, they will want to hear your powerful voice. Zyskos, they'll decide if they want to execute you or not. Kortez and Mark… we will be running a few tests on you guys…"

Mark and I exchanged glances.

"Oh, don't worry. It will just be minor. And for Zip… we would like to see what you are capable of academically. Remember, we did alter your brain a bit and made you smarter," Grodus announced.

Zip nodded- looking ashamed.

"Everyone _must _be on their best behavior! Do you understand me?" Grodus hissed.

"Yes Sir," everyone chanted in unison.

"Great. And don't freak out if people want to… hem… _examine _you. They will most likely go for Vixen or Velocitess this time, but we never know. Kortez, Mark, you two are new, so you will have to be explained to…"

_**5:26 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**__**~  
**_"Uhmm… That's… weird…" Mark muttered.

"Ditto. That's nasty… and awkward," I replied.

"I mean, but you guys aren't really people. You guys are test subjects- in which we may do whatever we wish with you. You used to be people… Well, Kortez most likely used to. Zip, Velocitess, Vixen, and Mark here are all one big family. I actually took three of them in and raised them. But two of them are ungrateful brats and have never thanked me before for my great deed," Grodus sneered.

Mark looked like he was going to explode!

"Listen here, cybercrap! I had a great family, 'k? I ran away from Mom and Pops 'cause they were drug addicts! But I have a girlfriend in our apartment just wondering when I'm gonna come back! And I have a baby on the way! I can't stay here for much longer! I gotta go back to her! And 'ya gotta release my family! Yeah, they're a pain in the butt, but I care about them and I don't want my little bro and sisters to get hurt! I mean, you made Vixen into a total b-"

"Beautiful woman?" Grodus laughed.

"No! You made my little sister look like a hooker! And you took them when they were little, 'cause Mom and Pops sold them to you for drug money! And I'm willing to take them back in! I don't wanna go through this whole 'Mutant Show and Tell' crap! In fact, I'll take all of these poor kids in! I'll find 'em a real family and make 'em not be treated like crap on the side of the road!" Mark growled.

"Mark, Mark, Mark… settle down, I'm sure that we can settle this. My conclusion is, is that you are never leaving here. Ever. This is your new home, and you will learn to like it," Grodus said calmly.

Mark rolled his eyes. "Well, ya'know what, cybercrap? I'm an adult and I can do whatever I want- and you can't do anything about it!" he snarled. Mark got up and tried to walk out of the door.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you, Mark. You will get punished…" Grodus scolded with no emotion in his voice. He reached inside of his cloak and pulled out a set of buttons. He pressed the "M" button, then the "A", "R", and "K". He then tapped the button on the third panel that was to the right.

Mark dropped to his knees. He got electrocuted. Wow.

"Now get back up here and we can continue our dispute. Or, if you're smart, you will get back up without another word," Grodus barked coldly.

Mark shook his head a bit and sat back in his chair.

"Anything else?" Grodus asked. Mark didn't say another word. "Good."  
_**6:50 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**__**~  
**_As everyone was devouring their meal, Grodus looked at all of our faces. Of course, he was a cyborg dictator of all mutants. He couldn't eat.

"Is everyone almost finished with their meals?" he asked.

Everyone nodded.

"Good. Everyone needs to wipe their mouths off and then we can get going with the extravaganza," he replied. All of us groaned and got up.

"But, Grodie! I don't wanna!" Vixen pouted.

"Aw, Grodie will make it up to you," Grodus patted her back.

"You better," Vixen snorted.

Grodus escorted us to a gigantic room with chairs and crap in it. There was a glass wall dividing the room in half. One part of the room for the spectators, and the other for the mutants. He took us to the mutant half and closed the glass door. He then locked it. Inside of the mutant half, there were a few Elite guards. A few PhDs posed as assistants.

"In five minutes, people will be flooding in here. Now, do you remember the rules?" Grodus asked.

"Mmhmm. Who doesn't?" Velocity murmured.

Zip cracked a mere grin. I checked my surroundings as Zip and Velocity started to chat. I looked behind myself and noticed Mark. He was mumbling about his family and about his problems.

Oh, I was dreading this so badly. I just wanted to go home.

Time flew by as- what seemed to be- millions of X-Naut spectators filled the room. Their eyes were glued on us. Ugh. We're the center of attention, and I hate being the center of attention! I'm more of a background person.

Grodus exited the huge glass room and entered the spectators' room. There was a large stage with a microphone placed on it. He tapped the microphone a few times.

"Good afternoon, gentlemen! This is the thirtieth 'Mutant Show and Tell' extravaganza of the year, and I am excited to announce that we have two new subjects! Mr. Mark Kicks and Ms. Kortez Bleck. Mr. Kicks is twenty-six and has exceptional academic achievements. Ms. Bleck just turned fourteen on the twenty-first and is an awfully quick runner. And, as usual, I hope that everyone brought an armful of cash, because we will bet on the two in a few tests, and whichever one wins, the people who bet on the subject get the grand prize money! Each of you!" Grodus announced happily. And… the crowd roared in agreement and excitement.

"Everyone knows where we will be selling refreshments. Oh yes, we have also finally completed the expansion chemical! It finally worked beautifully on Ms. Vixen Kicks," Grodus exclaimed.

The crowd let out another satisfied rumble.

"So, the first test is: a stealth test. Ms. Bleck will be very comfortable with it; lets see how Mr. Kicks deals under the pressure," Grodus nodded.

"Mark! Kortez!" he barked. Two X-Nauts ushered us out of the glass room and up to the stage.

A handful of spectators started to rowdily chat, and around forty took pictures of us.

"Good, good. Let's get you two to the courtyard, shall we?"

_**7:36 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**__**~  
**_We were led to the same courtyard-maze thing that I ran in earlier today. Mark looked at me and growled. I smirked and cracked my knuckles.

"Okay you two," Grodus announced, "this test will suit Kortez very well. This test will have a series of mazes; in which you will be timed on. But, the thing that is different from the one that Kortez did this morning is that there will be obstacles. Still, I believe that this will be a piece of cake for her. I wish the best of luck for you two."

Mark glared and hunched down a bit. "One… two… three… GO!"  
I bolted off, running in a pattern: right, left, middle, left, middle, right… The "obstacles" were no problem! Every once and a while there would be a hurdle or a ledge.

After I was declared the winner, Grodus announced that the next test would be an academic test. Ugh! That's for school!

Mark grinned. We were sitting together with a large touch screen computer/tablet device in front of our faces.

The first question came up. "A person with geno type AA had a baby with a geno type Aa, what geno type would the baby have? "

Oh… Geno type? What?

Mark smirked and entered the right answer, which was "50 percent chance of AA and 50 percent chance of Aa". I mean, it could've been wrong, but Grodus took it.

Question two. "What type of state was Italy in the 1930s and 1940s?" And of course, Mark correctly answered. "Totalitarian state."

Question three. "What is fifty cubed divided by twenty to the fourth power?" Mark's CORRECT answer, "Point 78125."

"Mark wins!"  
I rolled my eyes as he snorted. Grodus patted him on the back, "And since academic achievements are better than stealth, Mark wins the whole entire competition. And he also wins the prize."

Mark tilted his head up in triumph. I growled. "Mark," Grodus said.

"We will try out our new test on you to make you even smarter."

I groaned silently as he elbowed me- just to rub it in.

_**10:34 PM~ DECEMBER THE 23**__**rd**___

As Zyskos hopped on my shoulders for a piggy-back ride, Grodus mentioned something else. Velocity caught up with Zyskos and me.

"All of you will be getting real rooms. Not glass cages. I've realized that you people work very hard to please me," he said, "so I've decided to reward all of you with real rooms- with real beds."

Zyskos's little face lit up. "Really Sir? You mean it?"

"Yes, Zyskos. I really mean it."  
"COOL!"

"Sweet," Zip grinned. Grodus turned his head to me and pressed his fingers together. He made a hand gesture for me to come over to him.

Zyskos got off of me as I walked over to Grodus.

"Yeah?" I asked.

"You did a nice job on the test this evening, Kortez," he nodded.

"Thanks," I sighed.

"As everyone else, I have high expectations for you…"

"And?"  
"I must say, you do have potential. So that's why I've also decided to send you to school. But…" he said with a hint of agitation in his voice.

"Really? Oh! Thank you! Thank you, thank you, and thank you so much!" I exclaimed.

"Hold on, dear. You mustn't speak of your father. You must stay with Zypher the whole entire time. You must sit with him, eat lunch with him, he'll even time you when you go to the restroom," Grodus said.

My heart sank to my feet. I muttered, "Oh..."

"Yes, that's the only catch. Now, I'd rather you stay safe and sound here. But Ninnie says that your brain is still developing and that you should go to school. Eighth grade is important, I suppose."  
"I guess that you're right, but I hate Zypher's guts. I hate all of this. He's the person who took me here. I'm just-"

"Oh, no Kortez. We sent Zypher out to become friends with you when you were a small child because we needed a new subject. He's been more of a spy sent by us more than your friend, and I'm terribly sorry if you've formed a friendship-like bond with him. It was meant to be broken," he sighed. "Just think of him like your guardian, okay?"  
I crossed my arms and felt my eyes moisten. Oh dear Jades, I can't cry. No, no, no, no! I clucked my tongue.

"I hate you! I hate all of this! And I'm going home!" I yelled angrily, starting to bolt off. I heard Grodus grunt in the background and several people shout.

I swung the doors open and dashed out of the show and tell room. But I stopped when I heard _this._

"Can you believe it? Kortez Bleck has like… superwoman speed! I mean, wow!"

"Just between you 'n me, Sir Grodus has 'plans' with her. Like he did with poor, _poor _Corbett. Poor guy. He eventually killed 'emself. He drank ricin in water because he wanted to die so much. After Corbett died… Grodus's been watchin' Kortez ever since."

"Really?"  
"Yeah. It's sad. I mean…"  
"Dude, you're too much of a softie."

"I know, but…"

"You shouldn't care if the girl dies! I mean, everyone knows that she will! It's obvious! Grodus's just sucking up to her to gain trust! Come on!"

I held my stomach to keep from vomiting. I stopped straight in front of the two chatty X-Nauts and almost made a deer-in-the-headlights expression.

"There she is. She's awful cute, isn't she?" They tried to walk off, but I grabbed them.

"Tell me more! Please!" I cried.

"Oh. You were listening?"  
"Heck yes! I mean I-"

I fell into someone's arms as I lost consciousness. Ooohhh…

"I got her. Don't worry, Sir," Mark's voice startled me a bit. He threw my legs over his left arm and carried me to my room.

**~  
Hey! Sorry for the LATE LATE LATE update! Just been busy with Slick 2 and school and this. Happy Thanksgiving! I'm thankful for all of you guys and how much I love you guys! Yay!**

**(I forgot to post this one! Oops! Sorry… D: )  
**


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